The DOJ informed Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams that federal election monitors would be dispatched to the state's two largest counties, where electorates lean Democratic.
WHAS reports the message came from the DOJ's Civil Rights Division on October 21.
Federal monitoring during elections is not unique to the current administration. In 2024, the Biden administration sent monitors to Jefferson and Kenton counties in Kentucky.
But the DOJ under Trump is reportedly expanding the number by hundreds — with the intention of dispatching 1,000 election monitors nationwide.
Kentucky Democrats have responded, with KDP Chair Colmon Elridge writing in a statement that it's "no coincidence Trump is singling out areas ready to elect and reelect Democrats like Zach Dembo and Congressman Morgan McGarvey."
Elridge went on to say that, “As part of our commitment to full and fair elections in Kentucky, we will not tolerate any interference. We expect and demand that federal monitors follow all rules.”